This disclosure relates generally to control of electronic media devices and content. More particularly, the embodiments described herein relate to use of an internet-enabled device to control navigation through media or entertainment content and control media devices or components.
Consumers have two levels of complexity to deal with in their premises (e.g., homes, offices, etc.). A first complexity deals with managing and controlling various electronic components or equipment in the premises (e.g., audio components, video components, digital video recorders (DVRs), digital video players, etc.). The conventional solution to this problem has been the universal remote that allows a consumer to control more than one component with a single remote.
A second complexity is that the consumer currently has no way to interactively research/browse through the plethora of content choices that are available for them to watch and/or listen to from numerous sources at any particular moment. Consumers of content are faced with the ever increasing dilemma of finding content to watch that matches their desires and needs. Given that most consumers now have access to a plethora of channels, the current approach of using an Electronic Program Guide (EPG) to search for TV content is not a satisfactory approach and most consumers confine their viewing to a limited subset of channels. When content from IPTV and other internet sources are included this approach fails completely. Furthermore, the use of search assumes that the user knows what they are searching for, and works well under that assumption. However, in many, if not most, circumstances the user does not have a specific piece of content that they wish to search for and watch.